Decadent chocolate chip cookie soda pop delights and disgusts Canada

The recent appearance of a carbonated beverage version of the signature President’s Choice cookie seemed to catch supermarket shoppers by surprise based on the reactions on social media.

And most were even more confused after they got their first taste of the stuff.

But the Decadent Chocolate Flavoured Soda was designed as a lower-priced part of an effort by Loblaw to commemorate the 25th anniversary of the most popular creation from the President’s Choice line originally designed by Dave Nichol — the former chief executive who died in September.

An official statement from the company explained that the pop is ideal for chocolate martinis or chocolate floats for kids.

So, perhaps only the brave will drink the 99-cent litre straight out of the plastic bottle and discover a taste that falls somewhere between cream soda, vanilla seltzer and a Tootsie Roll.

The listed ingredients — natural flavour, caramel colour, potassium benzoate, malic acid and potassium citrate — suggest that no chocolate chips were sacrificed in the making of the soda.

Chocolate flavoured soda has existed elsewhere in the past, largely from bottlers that no longer exist, even though there was a limited edition Cherry Chocolate Diet Dr. Pepper produced in the U.S. in 2007.

American soda brand Canfield’s also continues to produce a Diet Chocolate Fudge. But the President’s Choice creators curiously went all-in with the sugar.

The drink is being formally launched in the annual Holiday Insider’s Report on Nov. 15 — in tandem with other limited-time Decadent derivations from hot chocolate to pancake mix — but reactions online trickled in as the product was discovered on shelves in the preceding week.

(Loblaw has promised to put Canada.com in touch with someone who can say more about the making of the flavour but did not manage to find them before the launch date. This item will be updated if they do.)

For now, some of the early reactions from Twitter:

At 99cents a bottle, the new PC "The Decadent" chocolate soda is a decent value for a night of Fear Factor-like testing amongst friends.